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Fall Back Tonight!
Time to sew that foot back on the top again! Don't forget to set your clocks back one hour.
Hello Group....
I hope the end of October finds you all well....I should be able to visit here more often now that my VB teams have finished their season....that means I'm down to just JH Girls Basketball and teaching so I can "end" most evenings much earlier....
How has the H1N1 affected your districts? We've actually not seen any real effect, just the usual 6 or 7 students out for 3 - 5 days each....we are crossing our fingers that the worst is past, but we'll see....
OK, I'm going to call it a night and check back in the AM....later....TC
How has the H1N1 affected your districts? We've actually not seen any real effect, just the usual 6 or 7 students out for 3 - 5 days each....we are crossing our fingers that the worst is past, but we'll see....
OK, I'm going to call it a night and check back in the AM....later....TC
This I Believe
PBS has a radio show called this I believe where various people read their essays on what they believe. They've also published several books and a curriculum based on this program. I got the curriculum (spelling? this is one of those words I can never remember) and stole and rearranged some of the activities for my freshmen. I've posted one of the results in the pictures. Enjoy!1 - Debbie N.
Evening All...
sorry I've not been around much....October is by far my busiest month of the year as I teach my usual load and then coach HS Volleyball and JH Basketball at the same time....makes for some long days/nights, especially when I practice BB and then get on a bus for an away VB match....
But, the VB season may end for us later this week as we will be in our regional and have to face the #1 team in the southern half of the state....
I'll try to catch up on the previous posts just so I know what you've been up to....in the mean time, I hope you have an easy start to your week....TC
But, the VB season may end for us later this week as we will be in our regional and have to face the #1 team in the southern half of the state....
I'll try to catch up on the previous posts just so I know what you've been up to....in the mean time, I hope you have an easy start to your week....TC
every once in a while
Every once in a while I get to go back into the classroom and teach. Today was one of those days.
I spent the day working with freshmen phys ed classes on stress, it's causes, it's effects and coping skills. This was a precurser to a relaxation group I'll offer over a six week period for freshmen. (though I had one senior today point out to me that seniors are under a lot of stress this time of year and I should offer it for them.) Doing anything with 9th graders early in the year is always a challenge. They're still in middle school mode and going through their freshmen follies of growing up and adjusting to the high school. Doing a meditative exercise with 20-30 antsy 9th graders may not have been the bet planning at all!! But we got through it and I have 25 students signed up for my group so far.
Actually these classes serve another purpose. The reinforce my respect for teachers and rob me of any romantic visions I have of being in the classroom. It's just plain hard work!!
Oh well 5 more classes tomorrow and than this portion is done. There's always more to do but my personal freshmen follies will be over. - Debbie
I spent the day working with freshmen phys ed classes on stress, it's causes, it's effects and coping skills. This was a precurser to a relaxation group I'll offer over a six week period for freshmen. (though I had one senior today point out to me that seniors are under a lot of stress this time of year and I should offer it for them.) Doing anything with 9th graders early in the year is always a challenge. They're still in middle school mode and going through their freshmen follies of growing up and adjusting to the high school. Doing a meditative exercise with 20-30 antsy 9th graders may not have been the bet planning at all!! But we got through it and I have 25 students signed up for my group so far.
Actually these classes serve another purpose. The reinforce my respect for teachers and rob me of any romantic visions I have of being in the classroom. It's just plain hard work!!
Oh well 5 more classes tomorrow and than this portion is done. There's always more to do but my personal freshmen follies will be over. - Debbie
H1N1
How are all of you dealing with illnesses? In Michigan we have a long list of school closings due to flu. My school is still open but the number of students gone increases every day. I'm afraid it's just a matter of time before my school will have to close for a week.
You're kidding me right
Thursday we had our first snow. The roads in my district are very rural, windy and somewhat treacherous. It's typical for at least one person to wipe out in the new snow. This year was no exception. Fortunately no one was hurt but a pole complete with transformer was taken down at about 10:30 in the morning, leaving my h.s. and the connected m.s. without electricity for the rest of the day.
At this time we're already through the first lunch and into the second and our administrators decided that since schools had run for hundreds of years without electricity we could finish the school day out. (Yes but did those schools rely on computers for, oh I don't know, just about everything?).
For the counselors on the window side this wasn't completely terrible. They had no computers but could continue to meet with students and work on other projects. They had light. However my boss and I are on the other side, no windows. Our offices became instant caves. I was pretty much done working for the day.
No electricity pretty much means no heat and no water pressure. You got it, real quickly the toilets couldn't be flushed because without water pressure we become a health code violation. And we just began layering on extra clothes. Since there was no bell system or clocks the hall monitors had to go up and down the halls knocking on doors to dismiss classes at the end of each period. Meanwhile the tech people are running in circles trying to protect the computer banks if the power were to suddenly come back on (it didn't).
The buses were of course late, one end of our road was closed due to the down pole and they had to figure out how they were going to get the kids on that side of town home. The next morning we all get a call at 5:30 telling us the power is back but dress in layers. When we arrive at school we can't drink the water. We're cold and can't make our morning caffien jolt to get us going!!
Somehow we got through Thursday but I have questions about just how much learning went on. I know all my kids who suffer from anxiety didn't learn anything. Personally, I'd have called in the buses and sent everyone home, even if it meant burning a snow day. But I don't get the big bucks to make those decisions!! (lol)
-debbie
At this time we're already through the first lunch and into the second and our administrators decided that since schools had run for hundreds of years without electricity we could finish the school day out. (Yes but did those schools rely on computers for, oh I don't know, just about everything?).
For the counselors on the window side this wasn't completely terrible. They had no computers but could continue to meet with students and work on other projects. They had light. However my boss and I are on the other side, no windows. Our offices became instant caves. I was pretty much done working for the day.
No electricity pretty much means no heat and no water pressure. You got it, real quickly the toilets couldn't be flushed because without water pressure we become a health code violation. And we just began layering on extra clothes. Since there was no bell system or clocks the hall monitors had to go up and down the halls knocking on doors to dismiss classes at the end of each period. Meanwhile the tech people are running in circles trying to protect the computer banks if the power were to suddenly come back on (it didn't).
The buses were of course late, one end of our road was closed due to the down pole and they had to figure out how they were going to get the kids on that side of town home. The next morning we all get a call at 5:30 telling us the power is back but dress in layers. When we arrive at school we can't drink the water. We're cold and can't make our morning caffien jolt to get us going!!
Somehow we got through Thursday but I have questions about just how much learning went on. I know all my kids who suffer from anxiety didn't learn anything. Personally, I'd have called in the buses and sent everyone home, even if it meant burning a snow day. But I don't get the big bucks to make those decisions!! (lol)
-debbie
new stuff
Yesterday my vice-principal asked me to see approx. 8 kids who are already in danger of losing credit for attendance. I scheduled them knowing full well that if they are not coming to school there is very little chance of them showing up for a guidance appointment. I was half right - 4 of them kept their appointments.
That left me with the day free to work (relatively - the usuals dropped in during the day) on a project I've been turning over in my mind. I'm developing a series of groups that begin in 10th grade and continue on through 11th grade taking students from the transitioned into high school stage to lets start getting ready to leave high school. The focus is on skills, wants, interests etc. the things necessary to create a life path.
I found I'm taking a lot of my elementary materials (I was an elementary counselor for 9 years) and trying to upgrade them to high school. Some successfully, some not so much.
I'm looking for resources and suggestions to keep my groups age appropriate and relevant to 15, 16, 17 year old students. I've found they're still willing to play but they are not willing to do anything they think is babyish.
Any suggestions? - Debbie
That left me with the day free to work (relatively - the usuals dropped in during the day) on a project I've been turning over in my mind. I'm developing a series of groups that begin in 10th grade and continue on through 11th grade taking students from the transitioned into high school stage to lets start getting ready to leave high school. The focus is on skills, wants, interests etc. the things necessary to create a life path.
I found I'm taking a lot of my elementary materials (I was an elementary counselor for 9 years) and trying to upgrade them to high school. Some successfully, some not so much.
I'm looking for resources and suggestions to keep my groups age appropriate and relevant to 15, 16, 17 year old students. I've found they're still willing to play but they are not willing to do anything they think is babyish.
Any suggestions? - Debbie
